Sweet Silence
by fireaangel
Summary: It's because I can't talk I'm regarded as a curse, handled delicately because others are afraid I will break. No one loves me, no one cares...I can't talk, and that's why you get angry. They all do.' And with that, she ran away. -HIATUS-
1. Prologue

Sweet Silence

**A/N:** Yeah…it's another story…I try to make it as descriptive as possible…so here you go.

**Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine. If it were, Sasuke would be my slave as punishment for turning evil. Muahahahahaha…**

Prologue

"Ne, Shizuka-chan? This is your new home."

A young girl stood, holding a man's hand, at the large gate of the Hidden Leaf Village. Black eyes stared blankly ahead, her lips pressed into a tight line. Shoulder-length black hair fluttered about her skittishly as the wind blew; her black pants and shirt were being tugged in undecided directions by that very same invisible breeze, and yet she seemed unmoved. The man had short, messy black hair and brown eyes, and he wore a dark blue outfit similar to the one the girl wore. The disguised difference between the two was the way they stood: the man with a smile and in a relaxed pose, the girl with a solid expression and holding herself stiffly. Secretly, she did not really care to enter this new territory.

"Come, the house should be ready now."

The man led the young girl through the gate and far into the heart of the village, past shops and houses, springs and stores, markets and bookstores. Finally they arrived at a small apartment building complex. All of the buildings were a dusty off-white with the same shingles on the roof as in the rest of the village, and pipes were visible on the outer walls. Letting go of the girl's hand, the man dug in his pocket, pulling out a key and fitting it in the lock. The girl watched motionlessly as he opened the door.

"After you," he said.

She entered the apartment silently, followed by the man, who closed the door behind them both. She looked around with little interest. The walls were off-white and chipped in a few places, and bare, save for a scroll that had been put there earlier by the landlord. Removing her shoes and stepping up onto the main floor, she found that the room was also lacking furniture. There was only a sofa with a sidetable on either end, a small coffeetable the length of the sofa, and a short chest of drawers with a TV centered upon it. Shizuka blinked at the sight of her family's table…in the dining area of the apartment, which was open and lead into the kitchen via a doorless doorway. Beyond the doorway was another, which lead into a hall.

The kitchen wasn't all too special, either. Chestnut cabinets lined the walls. The appliances were white and black. From her position Shizuka could just see the hallway leading from the kitchen to the back of the apartment. A closed bedroom door was visible, as well as the door to the bathroom. The man walked past Shizuka and discarded his shoes also. Regarding her observances, he spoke again:

"I know it's nothing special, but it's all your parents could afford…are you hungry? All the appliances work efficiently."

The girl slowly moved her right hand up to her ear, bending her elbow and tucking her arm against her. She gently tugged her right earlobe with her thumb and index finger, displacing silky black hair only slightly. The man smiled, but then frowned a second later.

"What's wrong, Shizuka-chan? Don't you like Konoha?"

Shizuka's hand did not move.

"But…if you do, then what's wrong?"

Shizuka walked slowly over to a nearby table, upon which lay a small pad of paper and a pencil. Picking them up, she wrote on the tablet and handed it to the man. After reading it, he replied, "I'm sure the other kids will like you just as you are. And about me leaving, don't worry. I'll stay here, on your parents' orders and out of my affection for you."

Finally a small smile graced the girl's lips and she tugged on her right earlobe again: 'Yes.'

"Then, what do you want to eat?"

Another reply was written on paper: 'Ramen, and white rice with tomatoes.' The man smiled. He knew this was her favorite.

"All right. I'll be back. You may go to your room if you wish—it's right over there, near the entry." He pointed.

The girl turned her head in the direction of the stated location, then turned back to him and motioned for her paper. When it was given to her, she wrote, 'When do I start school, Sabishi-san?'

"Tomorrow, at the very latest. But I was considering taking you today. After all, it's only noon."

Shizuka seemed to contemplate this for a while, until Sabishi spoke up again. "How does that sound? We'll go after lunch."

After another moment of silence, the girl hesitantly put her fingers to her right earlobe. 'Yes.'

--

Again, Shizuka walked hand-in-hand with Sabishi, as they headed towards the Ninja Academy where Shizuka was to be attending. Upon entering the premises, Shizuka suddenly withdrew, hugging herself fearfully and releasing Sabishi's hand.

"Daijobu, Shizuka-chan, we don't have to stay. Let's just go meet your teachers, okay?"

Slowly, the dark-eyed girl nodded, and forced her feet to move forward once more. In the hallway she froze up again, but at long last she was finally standing in front of the door to her soon-to-be class. She chewed her bottom lip anxiously. Deep down she was terrified of this new life she was being forced to live, but she would never come out and say that. She had been taught long ago to never speak of such emotions.

Sabishi did not notice her internal struggle, and knocked twice before sliding open the door. "Gomen nasai, I don't mean to interrupt, but…"

The sensei, Umino Iruka, stopped and blinked a couple of times before recognition finally dawned on him. "Oh, right, you're that new girl that's supposed to be joining our class tomorrow! I see you couldn't wait, eh?"

Shizuka hid behind Sabishi and trembled. Sabishi just laughed. "Ha ha ha…she's a little shy, since she's never been to such a big village before…our village was very homely and tiny…"

Iruka chuckled in response. "I understand. Her name, is it…?"

"Noraiya Shizuka. And you already met me…Hiaruke Sabishi, her caretaker."

"Yes, I remember you…"

All of a sudden, another teacher came in and alerted the other two men: "Hiaruke-san, it's a good thing you're still here. The Hokage wishes to speak with you."

"Oh…all right. Shizuka-chan, can you stay here until I get back?" Sabishi inquired of the girl cowering behind him. Still trembling (but not as obviously), she touched her right earlobe. "Arigato," the man said to her, then to Iruka: "Domo arigato, Iruka-sensei…"

Shizuka now stood alone, her arms down at her sides, emotionless once more. She had to be strong now.

"Shizuka-chan? Why don't you go find a seat, so that I can continue with the lesson?" Iruka prompted her. Her dark eyes turned to observe all the students in the room…

This was indeed too much of a change.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1 (Sasuke POV)

The girl that now stood in the doorway had medium-length black hair and eyes of the same color. She appeared to be very shy…until that man left the room. _Then_ she straightened her back, let her arms fall to her sides, and wore a fixed expression akin to a scowl. My eyes widened in surprise and the corner of my mouth twitched in amusement. No one had more attitude than me…except maybe Uzumaki Naruto…and here _she_ was, rivaling _Uchiha Sasuke's_ attitude. Interesting.

I put my elbows on the desk and locked my fingers together, touching them to my lips in a relaxed manner.

"Hn."

Iruka suggested that she go find a seat, and immediately I saw the fearful gleam in her eyes return as she turned her head to look at the class. I kept my eyes on her, interested because she didn't answer him but instead walked right on up and sat down in the empty aisle seat next to Yamanaka Ino. Only then did I remove my gaze from her dark head. Ino would have thought I had been looking at _her_, and I did not want that thought to cross her mind.

"Hey," I heard Ino say. There was no answer. What was her problem? Why wasn't she saying anything? Finally I risked another look. The new girl was writing on a small pad of paper. I was confused. Why write a response when she could just respond verbally? Maybe she was too shy to talk.

"Wow," Ino said. "I've never met anyone like that before…"

What was she talking about?

"Okay, class…let's continue the unit on weapons with an opening demonstration exercise. Any volunteers?"

A few raised their hands eagerly, but I didn't move from my position. Naturally, Iruka called on me, ignoring the raised hands of others. He always does that, since I'm the best in the class. Sometimes it gets annoying, but it's amusing to see others' reactions whenever it occurs.

"Sasuke, why don't you demonstrate for us?"

"Hn," I replied. I stood up and walked calmly down the small, gradually descending flight of stairs to my left (I was sitting on the far left end) to where Iruka was.

"Here are eight shuriken," he said, handing them to me. "Since you seem to be the best at this…" Ha. Of course I was. "…I want you to aim and throw like you mean it. I'll let you pick your opponent."

"Wait, I get an opponent? What am I supposed to do, kill them?" I asked disbelievingly. What kind of demonstration _was_ this?

"No, you throw, they block. Any injuries should be minor, and in which case the student will be taken to the clinic…healing shouldn't take too long on something of this caliber."

Well, if that was the case, I already knew who I wanted to go up against.

"Shizuka. Can she do this?" I asked.

"Er…Shizuka-chan? Do you think you can do this?" Iruka asked her directly.

Slowly she nodded, and I smirked only slightly. This would be a test of her skills, to see how good she was. My eyes followed her every move, every step she took, every swing of her arm…finally she faced me, her expression unreadable. Iruka patted her on the shoulder.

"All you have to do is dodge or block the shuriken. Don't overexert yourself, after all, you're just visiting today…according to Hiaruke-san."

She nodded again, and readied herself by easing into a defensive fighting stance. I, too, changed my pose and held up the shuriken, arms crossed. Iruka glanced at both of us, then backed out of the way.

"Ready? …Go!"

Immediately I threw one at her—the first test—and she jumped up to evade it. Upon landing she bent backwards lowly, back parallel to the floor, dodging the next. Not surprised by this, yet a bit frustrated, I tossed two this time, which she caught on two fingers and sent them flying back at me. I was forced to throw two more in order to deflect them, which left me with only three shuriken left.

I paused. I had to think here…what move should I make next? Obviously she had been taught superior defense skills, so I couldn't just keep blindly throwing the weapons. I would have to strategize.

I shook my bangs out of my eyes and took a step forward. In that instant Shizuka, in one swift movement, had me pinned to the wall with one hand clutching the last remaining shuriken like a dagger to my neck. I watched in dismay as the two I had thrown hit the opposite wall. She didn't move, apparently still anticipating something further, or else an interjection from Iruka. Either way, her expression was steely and blank, and I realized it hadn't changed once during the bout we'd just had.

Dang…she was _good_.

"That's all right, Shizuka-chan, you can let him go now…" Iruka said finally. I remained tense until after she had dropped the shuriken to the ground. My eyes shifted to meet Iruka's, which were wide with amazement.

"What?" I said. "So she rivals my skill, big deal." But really I was amazed as well. Here this girl was, none of us even knew her, and she was already so skilled, as if she had been trained painfully well in her previous home. I myself had had much of the same, however, I hadn't started it until after I was seven. The tragedies of my past had given way to current temperament and increased strength.

"A-anyway… Wow. That was an _excellent_ display of skill, Shizuka-chan… Keep it up and you may very well surpass Sasuke," Iruka praised Shizuka. "You did very well too," he added, as an afterthought, to me.

I scoffed. This runt…what did she know anyway? _I guess it just means I'll have to train harder._

--

I left the building and turned to head home, only to run into none other than Shizuka, standing there alone. When I hit her, she whirled around and bowed. What that meant I really didn't know, but I took it as a 'I acknowledge you; I'm sorry' and simply gave her a curt nod. But then she grabbed my arm and pulled out her pad of paper, scribbling something on it, and thrust it in front of my face.

'I'm really sorry for being in your way. Could you tell me where I am, who you are, and where Sabishi-san is?'

"Who, that guy you were with earlier? He said he had to go talk to the Hokage…as for where you are, you're at one of the ninja academies in Konoha…and I am Uchiha Sasuke," I replied somewhat awkwardly. Why was she so fascinated with writing notes? More importantly, why was she asking me random questions after I nearly knocked her over?!

Snatching the paper back, she wrote something else and placed it in my hands. 'Ah, I see. Thank you. Who was that sensei?'

"Umino Iruka. He's been teaching there for years." _What is up with all these random questions?_

Another sentence was written, and this time I accepted the tablet. 'I'm sorry if I embarrassed you back there, with the shuriken.'

"Oh, that's fine. It was just surprising, that's all."

'No, but I didn't mean to…' I didn't let her finish writing. I snatched both paper and pencil out of her hands and demanded, "Not that I can't read or anything, but why won't you just talk?! It would be so much easier to just hear what you're saying instead of having to read it."

She got tearful, and reached for the paper. Reluctantly I let her have it back, and pushed the pencil into the palm of her hand. But the next words that came to life on the page both alarmed me and made me feel guilty:

'I don't talk because I can't. And of course you would hate me for it; you come from a clan with special abilities and great legend, I'm nothing. And all Uchiha clan members are like that, proud, arrogant fools. I should have known…' At that I got angry. 'And it's because I can't talk I'm regarded as a curse, handled delicately because others are afraid I will break. No one loves me, no one cares, except Sabishi-san, but he's only here on orders as an ANBU of our village…I can't talk, and that's why you get angry. They all do.'

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't know. You should've told me earlier, then maybe…"

A sharp shake of her head meant she didn't care. Or that I was wrong. I couldn't decide which.

"Shizuka…why do you stereotype the Uchiha clan? What did we do to you?"

'You _did_ nothing. It is what you did _not_ do.'

And with that, she ran away.

--

As I lay in bed that night, I found myself thinking about her…Shizuka…her name corresponding to her condition. She was silence. She was _unable_ to speak. It just didn't seem right. Remembering what Ino had said to her—_"I've never met anyone like that before…"—_I realized I had never met anyone like her either. And, come to think of it, what was so bad about the condition that brought such nasty treatment from others? After all, she wasn't rude or impolite, and she didn't look repulsive…

No one loves her…

"Hn," I declared to myself, and buried my face in my pillow. Yet, still… _How awful. To feel so alone…I understand what that's like. But why does she hate my clan?_ Now that was a question that puzzled me. Obviously _something_ had to have happened. Or else she wouldn't have said every member was a proud, arrogant fool.

I rolled over so that I was lying on my right side, and scowled at the wall. I had said something pretty offensive too.

"Dammit," I whispered to myself. _How am I supposed to get to sleep if that girl won't get out of my head?!_ I thought heatedly. Finally I just closed my eyes and let my mind wander wherever it wanted to. I found that thinking of my annoying fangirls was boring enough to tire me and at long last I went to sleep.


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer_: Naruto_ is not mine.**

Chapter 2

I woke up extremely confused. First, I was half off of the bed. My right arm draped over the edge and my left leg did the same on the opposite side. My other leg was just…there. My left arm had been slung casually over my face sometime during the night, and my elbow was underneath the pillow, which fell to the floor at the slightest movement. Secondly, upon removing my wrist from my cheek I realized with disgust that I had drooled. Thirdly, the sheets and blanket were bunched up at the foot of the bed, _and_ I had a stabbing pain in my neck.

Just great.

Slowly I sat up and blinked, rubbing the back of my neck in an attempt to make the pain go away. It didn't take long for me to notice the annoying sound that kept vibrating my brain with its consistant beeping, and I turned to glare at my alarm clock. Growling at it, I snatched it and threw it to the ground, only to have it shatter into several pieces. I stood up and stretched. Oh well. Good riddance. I could just buy another one, anyway.

Sluggishly I shuffled into the bathroom and began getting ready for another day of life…half an hour later I was walking out the door. Seems good to anyone else, I suppose, but only in theory. _Why am I moving so slow?!_ I scolded myself. For some reason I had an unusual lack of motivation. I mean, I was late for school. When does _that_ happen?! But I couldn't bring myself to run. My legs just didn't want to move any faster today, and I just kept up the snail-paced shuffle until I finally entered the classroom with a very unlike-me yawn. I got a couple of stares and even a few snickers out of the boys.

Shizuka was there, sitting in the seat she had sat in the day before. I claimed my regular seat and leaned back with another yawn, waiting. Iruka hadn't shown up yet, but I expected him to be there at any moment. But to my (and everyone else's) surprise, the person who entered the room was not Iruka, but a tall woman I had never seen before. She had short, dark brown hair in a boy's cut and piercing blue eyes. She was wearing a tight red and white dress that seemed three sizes too small for her, and leg wraps as well as the standard sandals.

"All right, punks," she said loudly, slamming her right hand on Iruka's desk and leaning on it. "Today I will be your sensei, since Iruka-sensei is busy today. First things first, I need you all outside. Now!"

Everyone ran outside to the open area in the front courtyard and waited. I walked in an unhurried pace, unsure of whether or not I should trust this lady, and merely raised an eyebrow when said lady stared at me.

"You," she said, pointing, "You're that Uchiha kid, aren't you?"

"So what if I am?" I replied smartly.

"I must speak with you after this lesson."

"O…kay?"

She clapped her hands and proclaimed even louder, "Pay attention! My name is Shitsuke Amayo, but you will address me as Amayo-sensei or Amayo-san, do you understand?"

There were a few nods among us, and I followed suit with a sharp nod of my own. Heck, who cared who this lady was? Just as long as she had something important to say that actually made sense. Her next few directions were lost on my ears, since I focused on Shizuka intently, watching her bite her lower lip stressfully. What was bothering her? I remembered the day before and blushed a bit. Could she still be angry with me for that?

"And so there you have it. I need groups of three. Go!"

_Okay, now I'm confused, _I thought to myself. Mentally I kicked myself for not paying attention. Normally I would be criticizing others for doing exactly what I had just done; now I had to criticize myself.

I just stood there, waiting for some random girls to pounce on me, but nothing of the sort happened. Haruno Sakura calmly and shyly approached me and asked if she could be in my group. I just nodded and gave a noncommital grunt, each action having entirely opposite meanings. But of course the pink-haired girl didn't notice that. In curiosity I glanced around in search of Shizuka, only to find that she had already teamed up with Ino. Instead the person coming my way was none other than Naruto. The last one…I scoffed at the look on his face—one that was quite disgruntled. Sakura frowned.

"Naruto, what are you doing? Can't you find another group?"

"There's nowhere else…" he mumbled. "Not that I want to be with _Sasuke_, anyway…"

Sakura fumed, "Then be in a group by yourself! Leave Sasuke-kun for _me_."

I glared at her, then motioned for Naruto to come closer. "Shut up, he's fine." Naruto gave me a look that said 'dude are you crazy?' but I ignored him and turned my attention towards Amayo-san, who had both hands on her hips and a displeased look on her face.

"Okay, now, begin the exercise. I shall return momentarily to see how you are progressing." And with that she left. I was perplexed. What was it we were supposed to do?

Upon hearing this, Sakura turned to gaze at me intently. "Okay then. Sasuke, if you want, you can do the weapon throwing, I'll aim, and Naruto can provide the shuriken and kunai."

I held up my hands to stop her. "Wait, what's going on? I wasn't paying attention."

Sakura gaped at me.

"S-Sasuke…" Naruto said quietly, "_I_ was paying attention…"

I felt my face get hot. "W-well, I…"

"Why weren't you paying attention, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked me.

"I-I was…I let my mind wander."

"Well, I suppose that's a significant reason, but this exercise is very important, Amayo-sensei said so."

This was getting ridiculous. "Just tell me what I'm supposed to do."

She motioned for us to sit down. "Okay. This exercise is part two of the series. Three are needed in the group, in order to make the exercise run smoothly. The one who aims points to or throws a senbon at the exact point which the others are supposed to aim at when they throw. Sasuke, you'll be the one to throw the kunai and shuriken at the place where I mark using these senbon Amayo-sensei gave us. That's because out of the three of us, you have the most accuracy. I'll just target a random spot for you. Naruto will be at the ready with more weapons to put into your hand. The goal is to throw all of your weapons as accurately as possible under thirty seconds. We get extra credit for performance. So don't miss the mark." Then she stood, and threw a senbon at a tree a few meters away. "We'll start there. Amayo-sensei says we're allowed to go all over the campus except for inside, so we don't mess anything up. Thirty seconds, starting…now!"

I felt the shuriken suddenly appear in my hand, and threw it immediately at the marked point—splitting the senbon right down the middle. Sakura took off in front and I followed close behind, Naruto readily supplying the shuriken. I hit two more right on the mark, but missed the next three by a few centimeters. On the last five I was given a kunai instead, which surprised me the first time and I missed the target completely. After that, though, I wasn't off by much, and on the very last I nailed it.

Sakura voiced our time—29 seconds. I breathed a sigh of relief. At least we finished right before the limit. But still I wasn't satisfied. In my mind I checked that—I needed to make it a training exercise of my own. The time to beat was 29 seconds with three people…so how much less would it be with just me? My thoughts were cut short when Sakura suddenly ran into me and I fell over.

"Oh! I'm sorry! We're supposed to spar with each other until lunch…"

"Hn," I replied, pushing myself up to stand.

"Who are you going to spar with?"

"I dunno. Someone'll walk over and challenge me. It's always the way it goes…"

"Then fight against me." Huh? Fight a girl?

"Yeah, but isn't that being a little overconfident?"

Naruto tapped me on the shoulder. "Hey, I'll fight you too…only to defend Sakura, of course."

Sakura's eyes narrowed and I just shrugged. "You think you can keep it up for three hours, fine by me. Where are we going?"

Sakura thought a minute. "Out front here is fine. There's enough room, and everyone else is either slacking off or sparring out back."

I stared over my shoulder, to the left, looking for something unknown. Finally I found it. Shizuka was sitting on the ground and leaning back against the outer wall of the building. Ino, who had been sitting next to her, grinned when she saw my eyes and sprung to her feet, dragging Shizuka with her.

"Hi!" Ino chirped. Sakura held her back.

"No, he's mine."

"Um, hel-_lo_, Forehead, he was looking at _me_," Ino retorted.

"For your information, I was looking at Shizuka. Your face is too happy," I interjected, getting all three girls' attention. Ino looked badly wounded. Sakura's eyes dulled but she smirked all the same.

"Ha, Ino-pig, he said your face is too happy! Is _my_ face more to your liking?"

"B-b-but, but…!" Ino stammered.

They really wanted to know the truth? They _really_ wanted to know what I thought? I shook my bangs out of my eyes and lifted my head up once more to smirk at both of them.

"Hn. Well, if you really want my opinion, you're too emotional. Now, Ino, can you leave us alone? We were about to start sparring."

Ino grabbed Sakura by the arm. "_I'll_ fight her. You fight Shizuka." The next thing I knew I was on the ground, with a bruise on my left cheek and a dark-haired girl standing above me. A piece of paper was thrust in front of my face, reading, 'If you're gonna fight me, it's gonna take a lot.'

I smirked. "Bring it."

--

I stood opposite Shizuka, both of us in a readied stance. Naruto was acting as the mediator, so he could join in on the fight if one of us started to gain the upper hand.

Shizuka's hair fell around her shoulders, covering up some of the pink shirt she had on underneath a black tanktop. She was wearing slim black capris and the standard shinobi sandals, I my usual attire. Crouching into a fighting stance, Shizuka grinned and beckoned me. I tensed but didn't move, which led her to attack me first.

_Typical_, I thought. I had a way of doing that.

She charged at me headon, then aimed an obvious punch with her right hand, but I dodged it effortlessly just by shifting to the left. However, this seemed to be a part of her plan, because she grabbed a handful of my hair with that same hand and pushed me forward, kneeing me in the stomach. I grabbed her around the middle and pushed her away, but not quickly enough to avoid the sharp slap delivered to my cheek.

I growled. Okay, so I had forgotten just how good she was. But that didn't mean she had the upper hand.

Even so, I was forced to block the kick thrust at me, and then the punch that followed. Shizuka twisted in my grasp and I, having no free hand to stop her, received a very harsh blow to a particular area. I was forced to let go of her and drop to the ground in pain. It was then that Naruto said, "Um…she says you're pathetic and no match for her at all."

"Grr…She just caught me off guard that time, that's all."

"Looks like you were on your guard to me," he replied. I glared at him, mostly recovered now.

"Do you want to die?" I asked him half-seriously, half-jokingly. If he had some other smart remark to make, I would shove it down his throat and rip out his esophagus.

"No…just saying…Hey! Pay attention!!"

My fist connected with Shizuka's jaw and the force of the blow sent her flying backwards. But her lithe body twisted, and she righted herself almost instantaneously, shooting me another smirk right after. At that I stood and created three clones so I could hang back while she fought them off, giving me at least a minute to think. This wasn't a serious battle, but I couldn't stand the thought of losing to a girl, so…

_How should I play this?_

The last clone she knocked off flew into me and disappeared. I landed on the ground again. Shizuka came at me once more, and I backflipped out of the way only to spring over her head. Now that I was behind her, I had a slight advantage for a fraction of a second—grabbing her I pinned her arms behind her back and both of us stood perfectly still. Just breathing, we stood there, waiting.

Sakura came around the corner of the building and yelled, "Hey guys! Sparring's over!"

"Hn…guess I win," I told Shizuka, who snorted and wrenched herself out of my grip. I turned to look at Sakura. "What do you mean, sparring's over? I thought we had three hours till lunchtime."

"We do," she said, walking towards us. "But Amayo-sensei came back, and she says we're having it early."

"What?" Naruto and I asked simultaneously.

Sakura nodded. "Yeah. There's some commotion going on with some new students. That's why Iruka's gone. That's why Amayo-sensei's ending class early. We'll have lunch and then a discussion, then we'll leave."

I glanced at Shizuka, whose eyes were wide. _Commotion with new students?_

--

Lunch was pretty much uneventful. I sat and ate, then waited with the others for Amayo-san. Not only did it take her half an hour to show up, but when she finally did, she had to speak with Shizuka privately. Shizuka stood quietly and followed her outside the room. I was annoyed, frustrated, and bored, just like everyone else, with nothing to do.

Fortunately—I think—Amayo-san suddenly walked back through the doorway and approached me with a confident stride. She didn't seem to have a problem with grabbing my arm and yanking me up from where I sat.

"It's your turn," was all she said, and I let her drag me out of the room.

I exchanged glances with Shizuka as we passed each other in the hallway, since I couldn't whisper anything to her that she could easily respond to without whipping out pencil and paper. So all I wanted to ask was left unsaid, and when I sat down opposite Amayo-san in a small room with no windows or decoration, I was rather skeptical.

"So…seeing as you are spending time with Shizuka-chan, I hope it's safe to assume you are looking after her?"

It wasn't a question, and yet it wasn't a statement. Therefore I wasn't quite sure how to answer it, but I knew I had to respond with something, so all I said was "Aa."

At this she raised an eyebrow. "Well, if that's the case, then you should know that she comes from a very important family, and the fact that she cannot speak has lead to others looking down on her, which has caused her to become unstable. She often withdraws, and you'll have to be gentle with her or else she'll lash out at you."

"I haven't experienced anything of the sort."

She looked at me darkly. "Yet."

I opened my mouth, then closed it, then opened it again. Amayo-san ignored me and merely stood.

"Well, I suppose it doesn't matter; you seem to handle her well anyway. I'll let her know of the arrangements," she said very officially.

"Wait a minute, what arrangements?" I blurted out.

"That she is in your care, if anything happens to Sabishi-san. Also, you are obliged to protect her, and you aren't allowed to discuss any of her personal information with anyone outside personal connections."

I had no idea what that meant, but I pretended to know. "Oh, okay," I said dumbly, and stood.

"Good. I'm glad you understand. She mentioned something about teaching you her secret sign language?"

"Yes." Again, I had no idea what she was talking about, but I went along with it anyway. I would have to ask Shizuka about it later.

"That's fine, but under no circumstances are you to teach it to anyone."

"I doubt the thought would ever cross my mind."

"Just take care of her, okay?"

"Hai," was all I said. She turned to leave and I followed her out of the room.


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N: Okay, so I had technical difficulties with this particular document because Word was screwing up. It was listing all the chapters on one page. So I hope I have that problem fixed. Gah...I panicked when I found that out! As I said, I think it's fixed now, so I can chill. I apologize if my difficulties ruined anything.**

**Disclaimer: _Naruto_ is not mine.**

Chapter 3

I was nervous. This strange woman wanted to talk to me, and for what reason? Did a problem arise in my transferrence?

The woman—Amayo-san—slid the door shut behind us and knelt down to my level. "Shizuka-chan, you are required to meet with your caretaker and the Hokage before the board of elders. A problem has been…unearthed…concerning the reservations within your existence here."

I pulled my notebook out of my pocket (a smaller one that I carried with me all the time) and scribbled, 'What is it? I thought all of it had been taken care of.'

To this she answered, "I'm not sure, the other teachers know more than I do…Iruka, mostly. Don't worry, dear, I'm sure they'll get everything straightened out."

I frowned. Who had slacked off? 'Amayo-san, when must I meet with them?'

"As soon as possible. Therefore, you will be escorted to the location of the discussion…and…"

'Will Sabishi-san be there?'

"Yes, of course he will. He looks after you; he must be."

'Very well then.' I affirmed my writing with a nod, and Amayo-san nodded also, standing up a little too straight and holding out her hand for me to take. She shook her head suddenly, forcing her bangs to bounce up out of her eyes, then looked down at me again.

"Come on," she said. Looking away from her perfectly sculpted face, I ignored her hand but walked obediently by her side to the main room, where the other teachers were at. Iruka was the first one to see me, and thus the first one to respond. Jumping up he said, "I'll take it from here. Thank you, Amayo."

Amayo-san gave a tight smile. "Anything for you…of course."

Iruka gave her an odd look. "Don't start that again. We already talked about that." At this, Amayo-san gave a little pout. I wasn't sure whether it was supposed to be childish or not. But it did have the effect of a spoiled brat begging for another toy. Iruka either didn't notice, or he pretended he didn't, because he shifted his attention immediately to me and said, "Shizuka-chan, come with me. We're going to introduce you to the Hokage."

Whatever. I didn't really care. Just as long as all of this was fixed.

Amayo-san stretched out her right arm, as if reaching for Iruka, but he turned his head only slightly to give her an awkward glare, and she retreated with that wounded puppy look. Ha. Served her right. I didn't even know who she was, really, but she had been getting on my nerves, and now I knew just why. She probably_ had_ been spoiled when she was younger, and now she did not know how else to act.

The sound of my caretaker's voice startled me. We had already arrived? I hadn't noticed…

He was wearing an altered version of the outfit he had been wearing yesterday; the collar of the shirt was decorated with colorful beads and thread, and he wore a multicolored wristwarmer on his left wrist. I had never understood the point of such colorful things, black being the only color ever presented to me in my life. In all truth and harsh reality, if it hadn't been for Sabishi-san laying out my clothes every day, I would probably still be wearing the standard garb I usually wore at home on the training fields in that rugged land. The uniform I would wear, as I had worn out of habit yesterday, was standard issue for all of the children and young adults who trained in the dojo of my esteemed father. It was hard for me to part with it, since it was something that held many memories for me, as well as Sabishi-san. In fact, he usually paired my outfit with other clothes to make me seem less daunting. But I thought somehow my facial expression, constantly steely from years of practice, would forever be daunting enough. Clothes didn't make you a person, I believed. They only made you look different on the outside. Heck, dress me in a pillowcase or silk, and I'd still be the same.

But that particular shirt Sabishi-san wore seemed to hold a particular memory, or significance, for him. For every time he wore it, he was more sentimental, more withdrawn, more…fake, outwardly. It puzzled me. This factor of him was quite confusing, since it was normally rather easy to read him most of the time. The multicolored wristband he wore had been a gift from the other ANBU. It was a funny thing, really. They thought he would die.

I didn't jump at the sound of his voice, or even flinch. I merely blinked my eyes in surprise, then settled back down to my usual calm demeanor. He only said my name, then Iruka's, but I could tell that behind his confident front in relief to see us, he was deeply unsettled and maybe even a little afraid. It was at times like these when I truly wished I could speak the most. At moments when just a gentle reassurance would have made the whole situation better, or so it seemed. But since I could provide none of this comfort, I merely settled for a calm, knowing smile that barely lifted the corners of my mouth. It was a smile that many had seen me use before, the smile that said, "It's not gonna get much better, but it'll be all right for now."

And it was that smile that brought a little more light to his face. Stepping out of the way, he motioned rather nervously for us to follow. Iruka gently pushed me in front of him, and I realized with a slight start that it was I who was intended to go first. My caretaker walked next to me, though a little behind. Of course, he did that sometimes, when he came to terms with the fact that he was not my equal, although he did act like it most of the time. No, I was above him, and Iruka, and most of the others in the village, save for the Hokage and a few designated others. However, according to me, rank didn't matter here, it was simply business that needed tending to, and apparently I was the only one who could tend to it.

--

We entered the Hokage's office silently, but I was the first one to technically speak.

I handed the message I had just written to one of the people in the room, and it was given to the Hokage: 'I was sent for, and have arrived as you requested.' I stood there emotionlessly, and bowed stiffly, only hunching my shoulders forward so that it wasn't really much of a bow. I didn't really care.

The office wasn't much of anything, really, but I supposed it was decent. No details are truly required to explain it; if you wish to know more about it, seek another source of information. Neither the room nor the old man in it interest me.

"Noraiya Shizuka, I honor your presence. Yes, it was I who requested you, however…" I saw his eyes shift to Sabishi-san. "…it is your caretaker whom requires information of you." At this new piece of information I turned so I was looking up at said caretaker. What had he required of me so important that the entire class schedule would be uprooted?

"Ne, Sabishi-san?" Iruka said, trying for me. I flashed a glance at him to let him know I appreciated it.

Sabishi-san seemed to be having trouble with his words. It wasn't long before he finally went on with it, though.

"Shizuka-chan, do you remember all of the things your fath—your parents promised you a few years ago? About the inheritance?" He spoke of it like it was something much more important than it truly was, almost as if it were a bad thing.

I only nodded, not bothering with the paper and pencil. If he was going to just talk, then, I figured, let him.

His eyes sparkling with some sort of strange, foreign excitement, he continued. "My brother has just arrived with news from your father. It seems that there have been some changes to the original plan. You see, Shizuka-chan…they—meaning your parents, of course—have been forced to step down from their place of rule, due to some new law taking effect on the whole region by the Board."

Uh-oh. I knew where this was heading…

The Hokage made an interjection of his own. "Because of this, we are all affected, but none so much as you. The matter has been discussed—_most_ fervently, I assure you—and we have decided that you are to remain here under the broad scope of our protection. It is our duty to you, as your humble hosts." Yeah, I _definetely_ knew where this was heading…

Sabishi-san continued. "You have been left with the entire palace, village, and surrounding villages, as well as the right to hold court and create laws. However, there are some restrictions that are entitled to be dealt with by your father, most of which you shall be freed of once you are of age and married."

Okay, I had lost his train of thought now. Of course, if my parents had been forced to step down I would receive all they owned, but…

He couldn't contain his excitement any longer. "Don't you get it, Shizuka-chan?! There has been a unanimous decision that _you_ are to be named the next ruler of this land!"

If it hadn't been for painfully refined composure skills I would have hit the ground right then.

--

If I could have expressed my shock through words I would have screamed, "What do you mean, I'm the next ruler of the land?! Are you crazy?!" But, being in my condition, vocal chords refused to work for me, and therefore I could not. So, for a poor substitute, I gaped at Sabishi-san with pure awe. He seemed to understand.

"Do you want me to explain?" he asked tentatively, some of his abnormal joy wearing off. Swallowing hard, I nodded. I was shaking all over, but my outward expression hardly showed I was now terrified.

Sabishi-san went down on his knees and looked me somewhat in the eye. While kneeling, he was a bit shorter than me, so he had to look up just a bit to meet my eyes. Usually it annoyed me. Right now I didn't care.

"Your father's position as feudal lord has been overruled by this new law. Whatever it is, I'm sure it had to be forceful, or else he would have managed to decline. You know him; he would. But since this is not the case, and he has no son to replace him, the only one suitable for the job is you. You."

I shook my head slowly, from side to side, like I was so stiff I couldn't move. I didn't want to take up a new responsibility. Much less in my home country, where we had just fled from. And it had been the government's policies that we'd run from in the first place; now I was to rule it all? What kind of deranged plot _was_ this?

"No, it _must_ be you. This is the reason why you were given specialized training. _This_ is why we fled from the law. We knew that the Board couldn't bear to see you go; you see, they have fallen under your spell, and miss you dearly. They negotiated with all of the other lands and forged a temporary treaty, and created whatever law this is, in order to force you to come back. Shizuka-chan…rather, Shizuka-_sama_…" I didn't like the way he put emphasis on the suffix. "Please, _please_, govern your people…" He bowed low and grabbed one of my feet tenderly, intending to kiss my sandal. I hated the gesture. It filled me with pure disgust, every single time I saw someone go to do it.

I inhaled sharply, and he froze. There. My opening, my chance. I didn't even bother to reply. I didn't even give him a physical sign. I just tore my foot away and ran. I didn't even know where I was running to. I wondered if I really cared.

I decided I didn't.

--

Blindly I ran through the streets of Konoha, that beautiful village which was supposed to be my refuge amidst times of trouble. A place for me to reside without fear of being drawn back. But that was all a lie now, wasn't it? Or maybe it had been a lie all along, dressed up to look scrumptious so that I would go for it more eagerly. I was surprised to find tears streaming from my eyes as I ran, their salty echoes of sadness lost on the wind that blew through my hair.

Was I sad? No, not really. Was I afraid? I was terrified. Was I angry? Suprisingly, no. I had thought, for a brief moment, that anger was the emotion I should have been feeling, but no. Mostly I just felt self-pity.

I finally came to rest by a relatively small fountain encircled by a stone bench, which I threw myself upon. Hugging my knees up to my chest and wrapping my arms around them, I buried myself in that little makeshift solitude, and cried.


	5. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: _Naruto_ is not mine.**

Chapter 4

I found myself waking to darkness, a blanket sprawled over my body, which was stretched out on the bench. The fountain was still going; its constant flow of water a soothing sound. But my heart sped up a bit when I sat up to realize Sabishi sitting there next to me, at my feet. He was asleep. But my exhalation of breath, or something, stirred him, and those brown eyes met mine almost sadly.

"I'm sorry, Shizuka," he said softly. _What?_ I wanted to ask him. _No suffixes, no tears, no words of compassion, no nothing?_

I just shook my head.

"You ran out so quickly I didn't have a chance to explain it all to you." _I was afraid_.

I hugged the blanket closer to myself and moved away from him, shaking my head yet again. In response to this he reached out and grabbed my arm. I could have slapped him, but if I slapped him I wanted to yell at him, and I couldn't. So I just left it alone.

He just kept talking in that same tone, that same, quiet tone. "Before this happened, your parents had set aside a small sum of money that should have covered all your primary needs. Frankly, most of it was used up after we bought the apartment for you. The rest was stolen, but that was only a minor setback to our plan. It was intended that you receive the rest of your education here, then return at the age of fifteen. Sadly, with this new law…you must be brought back, nisei. For the good of your people."

Argh. I didn't have my tablet…

"Shizuka…there are…several other things you need to know which concern this situation. The law that was passed involved your father's disposition, which, let's admit, is not that favorable. However, Eisai-san is a good man nonetheless, and didn't deserve to be demoted. I'm sure you agree with me."

_Father never loved me, why should I care about his outward appearance?_

"The second thing is that the Board has forced your father to step down _only_ so you could return. It is out of the ordinary for them to issue something so harsh, but simply being out of the norm does not make their action false. We must obey the law. Thirdly, you must find someone to marry before you return. The Board has given you three months. If, within that amount of time, you have failed to locate a proper suitor, then one will be selected for you."

I nearly passed out again. I didn't want to be married!!

"Also, we've been having trouble with the Uchiha fund; someone keeps slacking on the calculation of investments. You need to appoint someone new, someone who knows the clan's lineage well. I don't know why that must be so, but the Board says that the more they know about the clan, the less money they have to invest in research on it." Sabishi sighed. "All that time and effort spent on something so useless…I wonder if the Board members really know what they're doing…"

Oh, great. The Uchiha fund. An investment of sorts where money is put into a particular place dedicated solely on research of the Uchiha clan. Something happened between their clan and ours, which set both on a journey of self-discovery, or something like that. Personally I think it's just a bunch of crap. I don't have any idea why they want to spend so much money on something so lame.

Sabishi finally let me go. "So you see, Shizuka, it's all really a lot more complicated than you thought at first, isn't it?"

I still refused to acknowledge him, but bit my lower lip as a small sign that yes, I agreed. He didn't notice.

"Well, we've got to get you back to the apartment. You've got school tomorrow, anyway."

He got up and started to walk away, expecting me to follow. I slowly turned my head and looked at him blankly yet intensely, knowing he would stop and turn around. He did.

"Shizuka-chan, aren't you coming?" I let a small smile show on my face. Good, he was calling me "chan" again…something that was very important to me. I didn't know why, but it just made me feel more comfortable around him when he was calling me that. At long last, I stood also and trailed him all the way home.

--

The morning came late to me. Sabishi had let me sleep in for a few hours, since he felt sorry for scarring me so terribly emotionally. When I awoke, I was treated to breakfast in bed: pancakes! And not _just_ pancakes, it was pancakes with strawberries and syrup and butter and white rice on the side, with a cup of hot tea.

After breakfast, though, I had to leave for school. I was two hours late, but no one really seemed to care. Even Iruka.

It was only after class had been dismissed that I finally got an explanation and discovered the reason why.

"You never came back after that thing yesterday," Sasuke said to me. "Where were you? What happened?"

I gripped my pencil tightly in my hand. Should I tell him the truth? What would his reaction be if I did? I decided against it and wrote, 'I was called to be present at a meeting concerning my relocation here. Nothing too important happened.'

"Really? Then why would they postpone classes for the day just for that?"

'I don't know. Maybe it was for another reason.' _Okay, so it's not really a lie, I'm just beating around the bush_, I thought nervously.

Sasuke stared down at my words for the longest time. We were outside in the recreation area; I was sitting on a bench and Sasuke was leaning against a wall. I was puzzled over his behavior. Of course, I hadn't known him for very long, but even so I could still tell that this was not his normal attitude.

Finally he said, "Well, I guess it doesn't matter. I was just a little worried, that's all…naturally it was over nothing." He shrugged and pushed off the wall. "I'm leaving."

_All over nothing, huh? If only you knew…_ But I hadn't told him, so it didn't matter 'if only he knew,' did it?

"Shizuka." I blinked. _Oh. Does he expect me to follow him or something?_ "Are you coming or not?" _I knew it._

I smiled. He blushed.

"Wh-what? Don't look at me like that… Fine, if you don't want to, then—"

I brushed past him and smirked, holding out my notepad for him to see. 'You should've just said so. I would've followed.'

He gave me a disgruntled look and moved past _me_ so he could walk ahead. "You're so confusing."

'I know.'

We walked together in silence for a while until we were in sight of the place where we would have to part ways.

"…Shizuka…"

I couldn't give him a verbal response so I just leaned forward a bit and tilted my head, keeping my eyes trained on his face. My hair fell around me, framing my face and making me feel a bit like a picture frame. Sasuke avoided looking at me, but continued with whatever he was saying, content that I was paying attention.

"…What's your family like?"

I was taken aback, and my movements stated so. I stood up straight and quite abruptly, so I actually heard my back pop. That was when Sasuke looked at me.

"I mean, I know that you've been mistreated all your life, and something happened between my clan and yours, but other than that I have no real information."

Wow. That was a long sentence.

I scribbled my reply: 'Why does it matter?'

"I don't…I just want to know, that's all."

I looked at him skeptically, so skeptically, perhaps, that he had to look away…my gaze being too intense. But finally I gave in.

'My parents are…difficult. They treat me delicately, like I am a fragile artifact that might break if a single bad thing happens to me. But at the same time they are harsh, and cruel. My father especially. From the time I was three years old, I had to study under a professional taijutsu teacher, who taught me the fundamentals and later expounded on them. My father taught me ninjutsu. My mother taught me genjutsu. I also attended a private acadamy, where I learned to read and write at four. I graduated six months after beginning the course. After that, I was sent to the mountains with three sensei, who taught me stronger jutsu. That is where I am destined to return: the mountains. It is where I belong.'

"Then why are you here? Your life doesn't sound that bad. Actually, it sounds pretty cool. Why can't I get special training?"

'Because you belong to a clan that is regarded as special. You are special. Therefore, any training you endure is special training.'

"Okay, well…I was just saying…I didn't actually mean for you to answer the question…"

'My training was far from easy. I had to put myself in life-threatening situations and was put on the battlefield at the age of seven. I defeated six men and three women, but was badly wounded and had to have medical attention. My father punished me by making me train for three days straight, with no breaks, rest, food or water. It was hell. You can't say you've ever had that kind of training, can you?'

"No…no way…"

'So my parents are double-sided. They are professionals at what they do, but have this side of them that is just brutal.'

"I'm sorry."

It was a couple of minutes of us just standing there in silence before Sasuke finally spoke again.

"I…I don't know…"

'What?'

"I don't know how to talk to girls…"

'That's fine. I can't talk anyway. You can write to me, like I write to you, if you want.'

Now _that_ seemed like a new idea to him. The look on his face was priceless. "Really? Is there enough paper to go around?"

I nodded. 'I can tell you all of my physical signs, so you'll understand what I'm saying even without written words.'

"…Sign…language…?"

I shook my head. 'I don't know sign language. I've developed my own.'

He looked…excited. There was no other way to describe it. Even though little emotion was truly showing on his face, there was that gleam in his eyes, like, 'Oooh, a challenge, let me master it.' I just smiled and started walking again, knowing he would catch up quickly.

He did. "I've never done anything like that before."

I didn't 'say' anything this time. I just kept walking, until I stopped at the intersection and turned to him.

Suddenly an ingenious thought crossed my mind and I mouthed, 'Ja ne…'

Confusion crossed his features for a moment before he seemed to understand, and he actually _smiled_. "Ja ne…? I guess…I'll see you tomorrow, Shizuka." And he walked away.


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: _Naruto _is not mine.**

Chapter 5

"It wasn't her fault she was born into an unstable environment."

"But you didn't have to treat her that way! Now look what you've done!"

"It's all for the best, Netsui. She will find out eventually."

"Eisai!! Don't you think she should at least be told what will happen if and when she does return?"

"Sabishi will see to it that she returns, safe and sound…to the home of her ancestors…with a husband-to-be."

"The whole arranged-marriage deal, isn't that a bit…cruel?"

"Everything I ever did to her was cruel, don't you think this also falls into that category? Rest assured, she will come, soon enough."

--

I was content. I don't know why, but I was just content. For some reason, my walk with Shizuka had been both calming and enlightening. It was odd, since I had only known her for a little over three days, and I already felt so familiar with her. And yet, it was so unlike me to feel anything towards a girl—anything at all.

She walked towards me, stretching and yawning, as I stood at the intersection, waiting. She was wearing a dark blue and green plaid miniskirt and black leggings with a pink jacket. Why the random style of clothes? I mean, I was fine with the same thing every day…it was a sort of standard I had developed over the years. But then again, style of clothing wasn't really all that important at the moment, especially since Shizuka didn't really seem to care about it much either. She lifted a hand to her mouth to stifle another yawn just as she reached me.

I had not been there for long, maybe about ten minutes. Even so, I was still surprised that she had actually gotten up early enough to meet me ten minutes late. I let a small smile show on my face. Interesting.

Her greeting was a wave and a smile. I copied her action, which surprised _her_.

"What? I thought you were going to start teaching me your silent language so I could understand you without words," I said with a grin. It took her a second to remember, but when she did, her face lit up, and she nodded.

But then the paper and pencil came out again. 'Oh, yes, I remember now. We'll begin at break, after lunch.' So she already knew the schedule…

"You know, Shizuka…graduation exams are coming up…do you think you can pass on just a month?"

She bent her right elbow and touched index finger and thumb to her right earlobe. I stared at her in confusion. What the heck was that supposed to mean? But then she smiled, and nodded. Suddenly, it dawned on me: that was the sign for 'yes.'

"Well, even if you think you can, you've got to have exceptional skill…not that you don't have that already, but…"

'Are you implying I'm weaker than you?' she wrote.

"Maaaaybe."

'I'll race you.'

I was left in a small cloud of dust.

--

"Oh, so the fingers at the left earlobe means either you don't know or you can't say."

She nodded, her long, black hair becoming displaced and sliding over her shoulder to hang around her face. Impatiently she pushed it back behind her ears, then looked back up at me with another one of those smiles.

I opened my mouth to say something in response, but someone else spoke for me.

"Hey, Sasuke! What are you doing with _her_? You haven't split up since she first arrived." It was a brown-haired guy I hardly knew. Somehow, he had stumbled upon thinking that he was my friend. WHERE he got that idea, I will never know. He was with a gang of five other boys, all of whom I hadn't even bothered to glance at once my whole life.

"What does it matter to _you_, anyway?" I shot back in the same casual manner.

"Nothing much, just that all your fangirls are becoming increasingly suspicious, not to mention jealous."

I stood. "I've hardly known her three days! A relationship can't just happen, you know."

"Are you implying something?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and giving me a sideways smirk. I glared steadily back.

"Maybe, maybe not."

"_I_ think you like her. _I_ think you're just saying all of this to keep up the act that nothing's going on."

"I do _not_ like her."

"Heh, you're blushing."

"Am NOT!" Darn it! Nearly _everyone_ blushes when someone accuses them of liking someone!

Shizuka stood beside me and glared at them as well. I could tell she wanted to scream at them, but she and I both knew she couldn't, and this only angered her more. She clenched her hands into fists and threw her shoulders back in a defiant pose. I couldn't help finding it a bit cute.

The six boys closed in. "If you aren't, then why is your face red?"

"Don't make me hurt you," I said, still trying to prevent an anger outburst. I was bad with those, though few knew.

"Don't worry," he replied. "You won't have to."

"EVERYONE!! INSIDE!! BREAK IS OVER!!"

I let out a sigh of relief and sank back onto the bench. Saved by the bell…sort of. Shizuka looked down at me, still standing in the same pose. She forced a smile onto her face and held out her hand for me to take. I grabbed her wrist instead (so as not to alert any suspicious stragglers) and let her pull me back up. Once I was standing too, she tore herself out of my grasp and ran towards the building. As I watched her hair stream out behind her while she ran, I sighed again.

"Shizuka, you show up and cause all this trouble for me, and still I can't push you away… Is it you who makes me act this way?"

--

"Did you hear? We have two new transfer students!"

"I heard they're from the same village as Shizuka."

"Really? Isn't she such a pain? Are all of them like her?"

"Nah. I bet not. She's too weird."

The group of gossipers turned away when we walked by, and I gave them a nasty look in return for their comments about Shizuka so they would know we had heard. The oldest and tallest girl in the group saw, but completely disregarded me. Instead of throwing back a retort at me, she aimed one at Shizuka, one I hadn't expected.

"Do you have to rely on him for everything? Osanai oshi ko!"

They started laughing loudly, oblivious to our glares. I took a step towards them, but Shizuka beat me to it. She landed a blow square to the girl's jaw. Her friends stepped back, eyeing us in disbelief. _Hey,_ I suddenly realized,_ I should say something here_.

"_I_ think she can take care of herself, and she's not that childish."

Shizuka looked at me. Had I stressed the wrong point? I guess it didn't matter, because the girl she had hit scrambled to her feet and delivered a punch right back, catching her off guard and knocking her to the ground. The girl's gang regained some confidence.

"Yeah, Naii, teach her a lesson!" one of them said.

Oh, great. Just what I wanted. A girl fight. _Can I escape from here or do I have to proivde moral support?_ I questioned myself. Receiving no answer, I remained.

Shizuka pushed herself up and into a crouch, her hair swaying out to the left side due to the sudden uprighting movement. She narrowed her eyes and surveyed her surroundings—I guess taking into consideration the fact that she was horribly outnumbered by seven to one (or two, if you count me, but I don't know if she was). It was a moment more before she made her next move.

Crouching down lower, she tensed and readied for a leap upwards, where she then knocked Naii to the ground. I hadn't expected her to use jutsu, but she did—it was a jutsu I had never seen before, but I could tell it was of the wind type. It forced the other girls out of their little circle and sent them flying out in random directions. Naii was quieted with a subtle punch to the stomach. I let out a breath I hadn't even known I was holding. It was over…or was it?

Two girls tackled Shizuka from behind and Naii sprang forth to deliver an array of blows to their captive. Shizuka glanced worriedly at me, and I hesitated to move forward, but finally did. Did she want me to help? Or was she just making sure of something? I had no clue. But I went with the choice I had made, and joined the fight. What happened next was extremely confusing and helped little. I came and pinned Naii down, which surprised her, and then tied her up with the other two girls. But then Shizuka tackled _me_, and I shoved her off, since I didn't get what she was trying to do, and I'll admit it freaked me out a little. She lunged at me again, but this time I let her take me down, and just waited.

She pressed her forehead to mine, and I felt this rush of cool air envelope me, then dissipate. With a huffy breath, Shizuka sat up and got off of me. Slowly I stood.

"What…was that?" I asked her.

She just shook her head and walked inside. In confusion I followed her quietly.

--

"Class, I would like to introduce to you Kurusame Yohaku and Tsunaide Kusari. They are transfer students from the Netsujou Village, high in the mountains. I hope you will treat them with kindness and respect as you have our other member of Netsujou, Noraiya Shizuka."

I scoffed. Kindness and respect, yeah, right—she was just attacked by some girls I don't even know. Shows you how much Iruka pays attention.

And now it was time for me to pay attention. Yohaku had very straight and very long brown hair; so long it reached her backside. Her eyes were a deep red color—they looked almost brown. She was wearing a lime green bandanna in her hair as a headband and a black suit for her outfit. The bandanna stood out awkwardly in contrast to the long-sleeved jacket and pants that looked so uniformal. Strangely enough, Kusari's look was very similar. The suit was the same color and style, but the headband was red. She had pure black hair…I couldn't tell how long it was, since it was in a feathered ponytail that sort of exploded out of the back of her head. Okay, so I could definetely tell them apart…

Yohaku turned to Iruka and asked, "And when is it that we may return to our village?"

"Uh…I don't know…whenever your caretaker says so…I suppose…"

"He is _not_ our caretaker," Kusari snapped without moving to look at him. "He is the leader of the ANBU in our village."

Next to me, Shizuka shuddered. I glanced at her to find a seething expression on her face. Okay. So she was mad. _Good thing she can't talk, or she would be yelling all sorts of things right now…_

"Anyway," Kusari continued, "we are only allowed to stay for a maximum of two months, so we will be staying with Shizuka-_chaaan_ and Sabishi-san. I'm sure that's alright, isn't it? Nevermind, why should I care?"

Shizuka grit her teeth. I bit my lip.

Yohaku gave a huffy breath. "Whatever. Kusari, let's go."

Iruka was obviously confused. "Wait, where are you going?"

Yohaku didn't stop walking. She only said, "We have more important things to do at the moment." And with that, both girls left the classroom. Iruka sighed.

"I will never understand some kids…"

--

After school Shizuka left so quickly I had to run to catch up, and by the time I did she was already halfway to the place where we split up. She was moving with long, angry strides and had a fixed expression of hatred on her face. I had to admit, it scared me. But I still spoke.

"Sh-Shizuka? Why are you so angry?"

She gasped and froze. It was an audible gasp and the ceasing of her movements was extremely fast and with quite a bit of a jerk. Then she stared at me as if she didn't know who I was.

"Shizuka?"

Slowly she pulled out that pad of paper and wrote on it somewhat sluggishly: 'I'm sorry!! I had no idea you were even there! Those two girls have been sent by my father to…I shouldn't tell you.'

"Why? You seem badly shaken. I want to…help you…" It sounded odd coming out of my mouth, even though it was the truth. But it seemed to help, because Shizuka straightened up a bit and offered me a pained smile. So I continued. "Is there something you haven't been telling me?"

Her hand moved to write, but she stopped and brought the same hand up to her right earlobe: 'Yes.'

My eyes widened. She was using her 'special language' to talk to me…but why now? I needed detailed answers here, not a general response. I wasn't up for a game of guess-the-problem. But I was saved, because after that she began to write again.

'Can we go to your house? I'd like to tell you there.'

"Okay…sure…" I replied a little hesitantly, which made her look at me. Without really realizing it, I copied her previous action, and didn't notice I had done so until I felt my thumb and index finger grasp my right earlobe. This brought a giggle from Shizuka, which caused me to blush, which only made her giggle more. Eventually she stopped laughing and we headed for home…only mine, this time. It was with a more cheerful spirit that we continued on, bringing up a memory from the day before. Amayo-san had told me to be gentle with her, and to avoid her wrath as best I could. Perhaps I really did have a talent for keeping out of bad situations—or at least dealing with them calmly and rationally.

I was nearly bursting with questions, but was patient enough to wait until we reached our destination. But there was one I couldn't help, and it exploded from me right as we reached my front door.

"If you can't talk, then how come you can still make other subtle sounds?!"

Shizuka looked startled. 'Nani?' she mouthed.

I looked away. "I had to ask. You laughed back there, and I heard you gasp."

'I will tell you when we're inside,' her written reply stated all too plainly. When I looked back at her, she smiled. I opened the door and we went inside, where I was determined to get all the answers I could.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

I gulped. I had to tell him. I had to tell him everything that had been said to me the day before, or else I couldn't be myself around him. The idea of finding a suitor was a little disturbing, especially since he could be one of the possibilities. And I didn't want anyone to get that idea, even though several already thought something was going on. Not that their opinion mattered. It was truly mine that did.

"So? Tell me everything." I smiled. _Don't worry, Sasuke, I will,_ I told him mentally.

'I honestly don't know why I can make other audible noises by means of my voicebox…I guess the strains I use for verbal conversation are either nonexistent or severely damaged, or perhaps just genetically malfunctioning. I can feel the difference when I attempt.'

"Oh," was all he said.

'And as for what was truly said yesterday…'

"Truly? You mean you lied to me?"

'I wasn't sure if I should tell you or not. But I will now! Basically, my parents have been forced to step down from the throne and I am now the official ruler of this land.'

"Gah!! I…I didn't know you were of royal blood!"

I nodded, then continued writing. We were on the floor, and Sasuke was sitting a little closer to me than I'd have liked, but I let it be for now. 'But there's a catch. Within the next three months I have to find a boy to marry, and then I will go back and be crowned, so to speak.'

Sasuke blushed. "You have to…whoa…"

I sighed.

"I'm sorry."

'What for?' I wrote instantly.

"All this…so sudden."

'Yeah…'

"What else is there that you haven't been telling me?"

I just looked at him. 'What do you mean?'

He cleared his throat and stood up. "Well, do you want anything to drink?"

I followed him a bit clumsily, which I hoped he would take as a 'yes' since he wasn't looking at me and I couldn't express an answer either way. But I only ended up running into him from behind, which made him stumble into a table that happened to have breakable dishware on it… I grimaced when several plates and a few cups hit the floor and shattered. I wouldn't have expected it, but Sasuke was rather calm despite the sudden incident. (In fact, all he said was a whispered 'dammit.') However, I was quite the opposite—extremely panicked. I gulped and attempted to get off of him, as I was currently pinning him to the table, but my foot slipped on a large piece of broken plate.

I went down. And I took Sasuke with me.

After the collision and the crash, there was a short moment of silence before Sasuke finally broke it.

"Ow…"

I nodded.

"A-are you okay, Shizuka?"

I nodded again, but bit my lower lip this time. What was he thinking? Was he irritated with me? Or just in pain?

"What the heck was that? You could've at least given me a warning or something."

I couldn't move to reach my paper, so I just turned and looked at him. His face was all scratched up…and a little bloody. Had I really hit him that hard? Had dishes also broken on the table as well as the floor? I used said table to pull myself up and found that yes, there were. I looked back at him.

'Um…' I imagined myself saying.

"Ugh…well, whatever. You're just lucky that wasn't the important set of dishes," Sasuke muttered as he stood up.

I gave him a pathetic look that I hoped he took as 'I'm sorry' and stood up as well.

"Don't look like that. It's okay, really."

I looked down at my feet. It was okay. Why was it okay? I didn't understand. Back home, if that had happened, I would have been severely punished and then exiled to the harsher part of the mountains for a month of training. Of course, I wouldn't be sent alone. My grandfather would come with me, as part of my punishment. I would have to fight him constantly, and usually lost because he was almost as strong as my father, whom I could never beat in any battle.

When I came back to reality I realized that Sasuke was handing me a glass of water. I stared at it blankly for a moment, then took it from him and held it carefully. I was afraid I would drop it if I didn't.

"Shizuka…what are you going to do?"

I blinked and met his gaze. He looked very seriously, maybe even intensely, back. I shivered, intending to reply somehow, but he only continued talking. I guess he'd realized I didn't have my paper on hand.

"Because, well I've never personally tried to help anyone before, but…I'd like to help you, in whatever way I can," he said. After a minute it seemed like he had only just realized what he was saying and then added, "O-only because you're new and all, and it seems like I'm the only one who's nice to you…and…"

I smiled. _So I have a friend after all…_ I thought happily, and set my drink down on the table. I walked over to my trusty paper and scribbled on it the words, 'I am glad I have a friend! Thank you for being the first one.'

Sasuke looked shocked—no, he _was_ shocked—and seemed even a little scared when he read that. But in a moment it had all passed and he said, "Um…what…what are you going to do? I mean, about finding someone to marry and all that."

'It's a little awkward,' I replied, 'since you _are_ a guy, which makes _you_ a possibility too.'

He blushed and looked away. "I-I know that," he said, but I knew he had really forgotten that he could actually be one of the ones I would feel safer with choosing. I hadn't really met any others…yet.

"And so, it's important that you find someone within the next three months, right? What'll happen if you don't?"

'Well…someone will be selected for me, based on their background and abilities. That's why Yohaku and Kusari were sent here. They are supposed to be looking for possible matches. I can only hope you'd be one of them, but then again, they'd probably try more with you than other guys.'

"Wait, what? Why would you want me to be one?"

'Because, you just said—you're my friend.'

"Well, I didn't really say that out loud, but…"

'You implied it. Anyway, and so because of that, I'd feel safer. But, like I said, if they tried to do anything else…'

"What do you mean? If they're only here to pick out guys for you, then why would they try something with me?"

'It's…see, their personalities aren't that great. Yohaku is stern and calculating, not to mention cold. Kusari has an attitude about her that screams 'ME' and they are both beautiful. Guys we're used to like those qualities, or at least most do, and so they expect to be regarded as goddesses or something. You aren't in a very good place if they set their sights on you, because you're on the verge of 'cute' _and_ 'sexy' and they would literally eat you up.'

"Okay, now you're scaring me."

'I don't mean to, but it's true.'

"So you really mean to tell me that I'm both those things?"

'Everyone thinks so.'

"What are you talking about? You've only been here for a few days; how could you know?"

'I took one look at you, and knew.'

"You don't make any sense."

I grinned. 'It doesn't matter.'

"But then _you_ also think that about me, don't you?"

My grin faded instantly. 'I can, if I want, because you are, and that's…just the way all girls think, that's all.

"You're trying to defend yourself," he said with a small smirk.

'Come off it! Okay, there's something else you need to know about Yohaku and Kusari.'

Sasuke sighed. "Fine, ruin my fun."

'Most of our people—the 'important' ones at least—are extremely against the Uchiha clan for what happened years ago.'

"And you still haven't told me what that is."

'I will later. So, Kusari and Yohaku were two of the ones most hurt by that past act. And even though amends were made, and reparations restored us, most still hold grudges, and so whomever is left they will hurt. It doesn't make it any better, considering who you are.'

"What about the other one?"

'What other one?'

It seemed to take an inner struggle with himself to finally say, "The other living Uchiha."

'Oh,' I said. 'Him.'

Sasuke grit his teeth. "Yeah. What about him? What would your village do to him?"

'Nothing.'

"Why not?!" Sasuke practically yelled.

'Because he was the one who was sent to us to make amends. He's the only one we have no problem with. They don't hardly know anything about you.'

"WHY? Why don't they have a problem with _him_? He's the one who killed our clan! That's a big problem, isn't it?!"

'Yeah. I know. It's not my decision on who we trust.'

"But aren't you the ruler now?"

I shook my head. 'Not yet. Three months' time, I will. But not yet.'

Sasuke growled. "What else about us have you withheld from me?"

I blinked. If he only knew…

'Well, there _is_ the Uchiha Fund…'

"The WHAT?"

'The Uchiha Fund…it's a pointless collection of money. In fact, more than sixty percent of our money goes into it. Our village does research on your clan…and that's why we have that fund. But it's pointless, and stupid, since most of you are gone now. But they think that, for some reason, it will give us insight into your clan, thereby granting us abilities we had never dreamed of. It's absolutely ridiculous.'

"This…this doesn't make any sense. If we really did make amends then why devote all your time and money into giving it back to us?"

'Our village is full of fools.'

"Wait, why are you dissing your own village?"

'It's the truth.'

He said nothing to that.

At home I sat on my bed and looked out the window into a night sky full of stars. Kusari and Yohaku had not come in yet, so these were most likely my last hours of peace before they returned to our village.

The sky wasn't as dark as usual, because the sun was only just disappearing far below the horizon, and the color of the sky now was a sort of light navy, tinted with pink and orange. And the stars were twinkling almost as bright as the sun itself. I felt so happy, so calm, so complete, just staring into that sky…and yet I knew that tomorrow that same feeling would be hidden away somewhere deep within myself as I fought to live another day of life.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

It was dark. Completely dark. There was nothing but an empty blackness echoing around me as I slowly walked forward. Where was I? What had happened? …Questions I could not answer were hardly grasped in my mind at all. They left almost before I could think them, floating away to be drowned out in this unfamiliar darkness. Suddenly I stopped walking. There was a light coming from somewhere… Turning around I tried to catch a glimpse of where it might be coming from, but still I could see nothing. All at once, desperation made itself known in my core, driving me to break into a run.

It was then that I heard a voice ring out, questioning me: "Why are you running?" I did not have the words to answer back, but the voice seemed to know what I would have said had I been able to, because it spoke again: "Fear. Fear binds you here, and yet it compels you to flee…" It laughed. "Come, now, Shizuka-chan…are you not tired of running? Wouldn't it be so much easier just to come back to me?"

_Who are you?!_ I thought as I saw the light materialize before me, shining as a single beam down on a lone figure dressed in dark clothing and standing with their back towards me. "You no longer have a choice…it is mandatory now that you remain doomed to fail," the voice answered, which made me realize something. Even though I was running at top speed and in the same direction, I wasn't getting any closer to that dark figure who stood some distance away. The voice laughed again.

_Who are you?!_ I demanded once more.

"I am…" The sentence was left unfinished, because as soon as the voice began to answer, I slipped and fell into the endless blackness…

…onto my bed.

--

I awoke in a slight sweat. _What?_ I asked myself immediately, looking around almost frantically, trying to console myself with the semi-familiar features of my bedroom. _Oh. I was asleep. Of course._ It had only been…what, a nightmare? No, I wouldn't call it that…but at the same time, it wasn't exactly a dream either.

I touched the fingers of my left hand gingerly to my forehead and let out a breath. That voice had sounded familiar. Had I heard that voice before, perhaps somewhere in my homeland? Or maybe it only belonged in the land of dreams…

It was still somewhat dark outside; the faint light offered by the sun was only just now being accepted by this side of the Earth as it slowly rotated to face that giant flashlight. Each second, just as slowly, ticked away as I sat there, still trying to convince myself…of what? That the dream was nothing but a dream? That I was safe here, in this house, in this village, in this room, now that I was awake? If so, then it was the biggest lie I ever tried to make myself believe. Yohaku and Kusari were going to try to tear me apart by whatever means necessary, and probably get who knows how many guys involved…one of them I just knew would be Sasuke. This wasn't a good time for me to try to force lies upon myself, but then again, reality is never very safe, is it?

Too awake to even think about going back to sleep, I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and slid off. The floor was cold under my bare feet, but I didn't really care. The door wasn't too far away, I would just have to take about four more steps and…I fell. The sound of my knees hitting the hardwood floor startled me just as much as the pain shooting through my upper legs. I slowly eased myself onto my backside and examined my knees. I knew they were probably bruised, because the pain still hadn't gone away, but I couldn't make out any discoloration in the faint light. So, figuring I was still pretty much okay, I gingerly pushed myself back into a standing position and waited for the room to stop spinning, holding my head with one hand to gird against the throbbing pain while the other hand was braced against the wall so I could steady myself.

When I felt like I could move again, I slowly took a step forward, and then another, then another, until I reached the door. By now all the dizziness was gone, and the pain was only a dull ache I couldn't really feel. _What just happened?_ I wondered as I opened the door and stepped into the dark entryway. Pausing for a moment, I concentrated hard on steadying myself as a precaution (I didn't want to fall again) before I opened the outside door. _Why am I going outside at this hour?_ I questioned myself, but it posed itself as just another question with no answer, other than 'I don't know,' because I didn't feel like interrogating myself to try and find answers at the moment.

I crept outside, not bothering to close the door behind me, and after a few steps forward I stopped. Standing perfectly still, I closed my eyes and just _felt_ everything around me. It was nice…the air wasn't too warm or too cool, everything was quiet, and the atmosphere held nothing but a gentle peace. I would have loved to have grown up in a place like this…

A soft sound like footsteps snapped me out of my reverie immediately; I opened my eyes and scanned the vicinity, only to see no one…at least not anyone evading shadows. There was a slight snicker, which gave the person—or should I say, _people_—away as soon as I heard it.

_What are YOU doing here? _I demanded silently, turning my gaze to the large, dark shadows of the alleyway nearest me. Yohaku and Kusari stepped out of those shadows, snickering more audibly and putting on quite a show. Of course, neither of them could hear my telepathic question, so they just went on, probably just as planned.

"My, my, what is the little princess doing out here so early?" Yohaku taunted. "Isn't it past your bedtime? A princess needs her beauty sleep, you know…not that any amount of it would help you in the least." I just gave the brunette a death glare. This was SO typical…

"And I _can't believe_ we were dragged all the way down _here_ to this pathetic little village just to find _you_ a guy," Kusari said, completely changing the subject, which I was thankful for, but then again this wasn't much better…

"Yeah! You know, Little Princess, we're not _just_ going to get a guy for you…we're going to find some for ourselves!"

"Oh, _some_. You mean as in more than one?" Kusari asked her counterpart, smirking.

"But of course!"

"I should've seen that coming. It _would_ be more fun that way, wouldn't it?"

They giggled, ignoring me for a brief moment. I contemplated on making an escape and heading back inside, but I figured it was pretty much pointless; they would just follow me. So I remained, glaring at them quite obviously, even though it was equally obvious that they didn't care.

"So anyway," Kusari said, turning back to me, "it looks like you may have already found you a guy. But there's a little something you should know…"

"A secret, you could say," Yohaku added, getting a nod of approval from her dark-haired counterpart.

"Before anything happens, _we_ have to approve of him first."

THAT was something I REALLY didn't like. _You're lying_, I told them mentally. _You're lying. This is all just…a scam! A hoax. THAT'S what this is._

"Oh, and another thing," Kusari continued, "which you'll just _love_…"

"We get to chaperone you everywhere you go!" Yohaku squealed. I rolled my eyes. There was so much excitement in her voice…all of which I knew to be fake. Heck, she was even adding in arm gestures and acting super-childish, as if that might make me fall for their stupid little scheme, but I knew better, and that was what _they_ didn't know.

Kusari took charge of the announcement again. "And, as you already know, we're going to be living with you and Sabishi-san as of today…during which time you will treat us with respect. Is that clear?"

Still glaring, I whipped my hand up and touched my right earlobe, but instead of letting the action linger like I usually did, I yanked my arm right back down immediately after. Kusari smiled. "Excellent! Yohaku-nee, do you have anything else to add?"

Yohaku gave me that weird 'happy' look that was really more a sign of doom to me, and grinned widely, clasping her hands together. "We're going to have so much FUN!"

I turned on my heel and marched back into the house, slamming the door behind me. Even inside, I could hear their giggles. Momentarily, I looked out one of the windows in my room and noticed that light was dawning pretty fast. The room was growing lighter every minute. How long had I been outside? I guessed an hour at most, but then I realized I really didn't care and dropped the subject, focusing instead on getting ready for school. Yohaku and Kusari entered the house, _still_ giggling, and giving me no more than a sideways glance, which only made them giggle more.

I threw myself upon the bed and buried my face in the pillows. What did the world have against me? It was either severe consequences from my parents or hell from Yohaku and Kusari…and right now the former was looking a LOT more inviting…

--

Sasuke had similar feelings. "What do you mean they have to chaperone you everywhere you go?!" he all but yelled at me. I just gave him an exasperated look, which was apparently enough. I had told him as soon as we met up, so he would at least know why two nineteen-year-olds would be following me around. (I was just lucky they hadn't shown up yet.) But he was also concerned about what would happen if I completely refused everything…if I just said no to this three-month-find-a-future-husband-so-you-can-take-the-throne-thing? What if I even said no to 'taking the throne' at all? How severe were 'severe' consequences? But I didn't have time to explain all of it before the two nuisances showed up, so those questions went unanswered, at least for the time being.

"You do know what this means, right?"

I looked at him in slight surprise. Of course I did…didn't I?

"If you want to keep any secrets, you're going to have to put some effort into it."

'Are you saying I can't hide things well?'

"No, I'm saying that if these girls are as bad as you say they are, then they're going to be able to figure out what's going on."

I sighed. 'I guess you're right…they already think you're a candidate…'

He stopped walking and stared, wide-eyed, at what he had just read, almost as if he couldn't believe the writing was even real. I walked right past him, not bothering to retrieve my tablet, so he could let the truth of those words sink in.

'Yeah. I told you so.'

--

I would have to put some effort into keeping secrets, huh? _I guess that means we'll have to meet in secret if he wants to know anything else…_ I sighed. _And he does…he wants to know a LOT…_ So I—or _we_, if he wanted to help—would have to devise a plan… But how exactly do you go about sneaking around under intelligent (yes, I admit it…) ninja's noses? How do you keep secrets secret from highly-trained, unshamefully _nosy_ elites from your home village; elites who already know pretty much everything about you except for what's going on in your head?

_Really well. _That's how.

--

A/N: Wow. I am so glad I got over writer's block on this story…yay! But I feel like this chapter is too short… Oh well, at least it's a new chapter. :D


	9. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: **_**Naruto**_** is not mine.**

Formulating a Plan, told from Kusari POV

Chapter 8

Shizuka glared at us from inside her room, as if she thought we couldn't see her or something. Yohaku and I walked past her and into the main room so we could take it all in. The whole building was pretty shabby, if you ask me, but I suppose for a cover-up they needed something pathetic. Something to match the girl living in it. But I didn't understand why the secret was out already. It was far too soon. We were supposed to scout out first so that we could send our spy back with information about the village and what boys might be right for Shizuka. While in the meantime, of course, picking out a few for ourselves…

"She is such a dolt," Yohaku said, turning to face me with a huge grin on her face. I smiled back.

"Naturally. She is a princess, after all. Aren't they usually like that?"

Yohaku waved me off, almost laughingly. "But of course! I should've known… Hey…what should we do now?"

"About what?"

"About getting the guys…you said we could get more than just one, remember?"

Oh, right…about that… Were any of the guys in this village even _worth_ us? So far, all I had seen were dolts like Shizuka. I looked at Yohaku through a sideways glance. "Well…I guess we could go ahead and start…"

"What about the one Baka-hime was hanging out with? He's kinda cute."

"Too young for us though," I reminded her. "She's twelve, remember? He goes to the same school, so they have to be close in age…"

"Yeah, you're probably right. Although I would pass him off as older… Could that work if he was taller?"

I didn't care! Why were we even discussing it? "Perhaps," I replied, hoping she would move on to a more interesting topic. She did.

"When are we going to start trailing Baka-hime?" she asked, twirling a long lock of brown hair around her finger.

"We should give her a head start, and let her leave first, but then…I don't know, a couple of hours later, we'll come in. We can give her a shock."

"Excellent. And…oh!" She looked at me with wide eyes like she had just remembered something very important. I tilted my head slightly to one side and walked past her into the kitchen.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Our spy…when is _he_ coming?"

I straightened up at that. That _was_ important. "You're right, I'm not sure…though."

"Kusari, do you think he's here right now?"

"What, you mean here here?" I pointed to the floor under my feet. "It's just Sabishii here."

She shook her head. "No, I mean here in the village here."

"Oh." I paused, looking down the hallway, then back at Yohaku. "He could be."

"Well…we should find him before we start throwing a wrench in people's plans…where's Sabishii-san anyway?"

"I think he's back here," I answered, pointing down the dark hallway. "This is where the other bedrooms are."

"Take a look around if you want, girls," a voice said from behind us. We whirled around.

"Sabishii!" we announced simultaneously.

He was standing in the kitchen doorway, his arms full of…what, groceries?

"Hello! I'm sorry for suddenly taking off, but I had to run a few errands…I just got back and heard you two talking about me. What'd I miss?"

"Hi!" Yohaku chirped, waving almost frantically. Her bubbly personality was starting to leak through her cover.

"Good to see you," was all I said, skipping the introductions and getting right to the point. "Where will we be sleeping?"

"Oh! Right." He set the packages down on the nearest table and pushed based Yohaku and I to get into the hallway. We followed him shortly, stopping when he opened the second door on the right and pointed inside. "There you are! Two twin size beds and plenty of room. The bathroom is this first door, and I am in the room directly opposite yours. Stay out of Shizuka-chan's room, if you would? Oh, and please refer to her as Noraiya-sama or Noraiya-hime while you are here, unless she gives you permission to address her otherwise."

"She has already informed us that we are to call her Shizuka-hime or –san," I corrected immediately. Yohaku nudged me and gave a slight smirk. It was a bluff, of course. But Sabishii wouldn't know that.

"Very well then," Sabishii said with a smile. He nodded and stepped aside to grant us entry into our room. "I hope you enjoy your stay here. We sure have." He started to leave but Yohaku stopped him. "Um…what about exploring the village?" I was slightly surprised. Exploring?

"It's a safe, happy place!" was all Sabishii said. "Enjoy yourselves. Just don't get into any trouble."

"Oh, we won't," I replied, giving him a big, fake smile that he actually bought.

"Nice to have you girls here," he said before reentering the kitchen. Yohaku and I ducked into our room and shut the door quickly afterwards. Perhaps a little _too_ quickly, I thought, but then again Sabishii didn't come back to check on us or anything, so maybe it was okay.

"Nice to have us here?" I repeated in a questioning tone. "What does he mean by that?"

"Exactly what he said," Yohaku replied cheerfully, bouncing on the bed farthest away from us. The room was actually pretty small; the two beds were shoved against opposite walls and a sidetable was squished into the space between the beds, which was enough, but was still relatively small. There were no windows, and only one closet, which was opposite the beds and took up nearly the whole wall.

I raised an eyebrow. _This_ was supposed to be comfortable?

"Kusari." My teammate drew my attention. "What?"

"Did you hear what I said about throwing a wrench into people's plans?"

"Yeah…"

"Well, I was thinking…just who should we start with?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, we could teach them a lesson or something…you know, embarrass them. Or just make them an example to others…"

"We're not killing anyone, all right?"

Yohaku giggled in response to that. "Silly! You were the one who was asking if we could!"

"And they said no, didn't they? So we can't. Besides, I'd rather not get in trouble. Can't we just annoy people?"

She giggled again. "That's what I'm saying. We can mess with them."

"Okay, so you're with me on that…great."

"Why don't we get rid of her caretaker first?"

"Well, I don't know. If we did that, we might not be able to stay here. We'd have to live on the streets and take care of Baka-hime."

"Hmm, you're right…"

I looked down at the floor, pondering the conversation, our mission, and the possibilities…weighing our chances and what not.

"Okay, I've got it," I said finally. Yohaku looked at me expectantly. "Baka-hime is the one."

At first my compatriot didn't seem to understand my train of thought. Furrowing her brows in confusion, she asked, "What one?"

"THE one. We can mess with her first. Isn't she our mission anyway?"

"Mess with her? How?"

"Oh, you know, make her friendships crumble, steal all her paper, stuff like that."

Yohaku was beginning to catch on. A smile was forming on her face. "Oh…I see…we can ruin it for her!"

I nodded. "Exactly."

She looked eager now. "I love it! What's the plan?"

"We'll have to form the basic structure, but other than that we'll just play it by ear."

"Are you serious? I don't do that very well…"

"You will now. Of course…we'll need Rune to help us."

Hayaki Rune was our spy. He had lived in our village ever since his capture twelve years ago, and had proved his loyalty hundreds of times over. He was trusted above and beyond anyone else. I still wasn't sure why he was so loyal to our village when it was our villagers who captured him. Perhaps he had been running away from his old village? No one really cared. As long as he did his job and he did it well, any secrets he might have were safe.

"Oooh, this'll be so exciting!" Yohaku gushed. Okay, I wasn't feeling up for a girly moment…why was she acting like this?

"Yohaku, what did you eat today?"

"I didn't have any sugar, if that's what you mean."

"Okay…then why are you acting so weird?"

"No reason." She shrugged. "…Other than I'm so excited!"

I grinned. Okay, so maybe that was a good thing…

"Okay, okay, so—the plan. What is it?!"

"All right, we'll have to make sure she's in the wrong place at the wrong time, for one thing… And Rune will be the one to make things difficult between Baka-hime and her friend… That way we'll get to him too."

"Ah, the old 'attack the heart' strategy?"

"Yeah, I guess it's kinda like that… But we'll also need to find someone else for her, someone she'll hate. And after all that's over, we can kill her caretaker."

Yohaku clapped her hands. "Hee! Excellent! I love this plan."

"Great; I thought you would…"

"So anyway, where are we gonna find Rune?"

I had to think about that one. He had left the village only a day after us, so he shouldn't have fallen too far behind… "I don't know; he should be here by now."

"Oh! Kusari, I just remembered something!"

"What?!" Uh-oh, panic time?

"If we're going to follow Baka-hime, we've got to get going!"

She was right; we had been scheming for over two hours already.

"Oh no! You're right…we'd better go."


End file.
